New Releases for February 28, 2020

February 27, 2020

March Program Titles Released This Week:

Robert Cray Band – That’s What I Heard CD (Nozzle)

“Funky, cool and bad,” is how Robert Cray describes his latest album, That’s What I Heard. “I thought if it we could get this thing that Sam Cooke used to have, the kind of sound that early Sam Cooke records had, that we could pull this off,” says producer Steve Jordan. Over the past four decades, Cray has created a sound that rises from American roots, blues, soul and R&B, with five Grammy wins, 20 acclaimed studio albums and a bundle of live albums that punctuate the Blues Hall of Famer’s career. On That’s What I Heard, Robert celebrates the music of Curtis Mayfield, Bobby “Blue” Bland, The Sensational Nightingales and more, alongside four newly written songs. [Limited indie store exclusive colored vinyl pressing also available.]

Five Finger Death Punch – F8 CD/2xLP (Better Noise)

Founded in 2005, the American heavy metal band Five Finger Death Punch has described their eighth studio effort F8 as a rebirth. This is the first album featuring new drummer Charlie Engel who replaced Jeremy Spencer in 2018. “Every so often, a band renowned for railing against the sicknesses of the system, decides to turn the lens inward, to express the inner turmoil that smolders within their own minds. A beautiful a catharsis this proves to be, and it is seldom more warranted than in the case of American metal titans, Five Finger Death Punch. Five Finger Death Punch has opened the floodgates and unleashed their eighth studio album, aptly titled F8. Forged from the fires of vocalist Ivan Moody’s lifesaving quest for sobriety, it comes to bear that F8 is deeper, angrier, and more disturbingly introspective than anything we have seen to date from one of America’s most successful metal bands.” [Limited indie store exclusive picture disc vinyl pressing also available.]

Four Year Strong – Brain Pain CD/LP (Pure Noise)

Four Year Strong aka vocalist/guitarists Dan O’Connor and Alan Day, bassist Joe Weiss and drummer Jake Massucco, began conceptualizing the ideas for Brain Pain two years ago. For the past year-and-a-half they focused on bringing those thoughts to fruition. “We didn’t want to set a strict deadline for this album because we wanted to be sure we took the time to write the best songs possible. In the past our writing and recording was so dependent on getting something out in time to go on tour; this time we really had the opportunity to take our time and work through these ideas,” explains Day. In order to capture that sound the group enlisted producer Will Putney, who was an engineer on 2010’s Enemy Of The World and already had a relationship with the band. “We were really emotionally invested in this music so we wanted to go with someone who we knew would care about it as much as we did and Will was that guy,” Day adds.

Juiceboxxx – It’s Easy To Feel Like A Nobody When You’re Living In The City CD/LP (Dangerbird)

Juiceboxxx has been making waves in DIY music scenes since he was a 13-year-old in Milwaukee, WI combining rap and rock in an effective yet polarizing way that earned him an opening stint with Public Enemy in the mid- 2000s. It’s Easy To Feel Like A Nobody When You’re Living In The City is an album about the universal struggles of just getting by, told through a mix of anthemic pop-punk and deep-cutting rap lyrics. The 10-track collection is opened by the lead single “Coinstar Song”. Listening to it, you might ask yourself: ‘What is this life? Why??!? What do I get out of bed for?’ The answer might be in “Coinstar Song”, which is somehow both soul-crushing and supremely motivational. We are here to move forward, to persist, to grind what we grind until its deadly sharp. And if the answer to lifes pressing questions isn’t in “Coinstar Song”, you go on looking for it. That’s what the man who has maintained this deranged moniker since he was a teenager teaches us. Because if there’s one thing to know about Juiceboxxx, it’s that he never surrenders. “Did I mess up my life?” he asks at one point. Probably, but what else is there to do?

On March 15, 2018 Charles Lloyd celebrated his 80th birthday in his hometown of Santa Barbara, CA on the stage of the Lobero Theater, with an unprecedented group of music lovers, including guitarist Julian Lage, pianist Gerald Clayton, bassist Reuben Rogers and drummer Eric Harland. Organist Booker T. Jones and Blue Note President Don Was on bass joined as guests. 8: Kindred Spirits – Live From The Lobero is the unique documentation of an irretrievable evening and the culmination of the artistic energies of an incomparable jazz artist. [The Super Deluxe 180gm vinyl/CD/DVD box set features the complete concert plus a 96-page hardcover book and two lithographs documenting the first eight decades of Lloyds remarkable career.]

The Orielles – Disco Volador CD/LP (Heavenly/PIAS)

On Disco Volador, The Orielles push their sonic horizon to its outer-limits with a sharp collection of progressive strato-pop symphonies. Written and recorded in just twelve months, Disco Volador voyages through cinematic samba, ‘70s disco, deep funk boogies, danceable grooves and ‘90s acid house. It captures the warp-speed momentum following their 2018 debut, Silver Dollar Moment. “Disco Volador’s literal interpretation from Spanish means flying disc, but everyone experiences things differently. It could be a frisbee, a UFO, an alien nightclub or how you feel when you fly; what happens to your body physically or that euphoric buzz from a great party,” suggests bassist and singer Esme. “But it is an album of escape. If I went to space I might not come back.” [Limited green colored vinyl pressing also available.]

Real Estate – The Main Thing CD/2xLP+MP3 (Domino)

Over the last decade, Real Estate has crafted warm yet meticulous pop-minded music, specializing in soaring melodies that are sentimentally evocative and unmistakably their own. The Main Thing dives even further into the musical dichotomies they’re known for – lilting, bright guitar lines set against emotionally nuanced lyrics, complex arrangements conveyed breezily – and what emerges is a superlative collection of interrogative songs as full of depth, strangeness and contradictions as they are lifting hooks. For the first time ever, Real Estate has brought in outside instrumentalists and special guests like Sylvan Esso, whose vocalist Amelia Meath features on first single, “Paper Cup”. Across the 13 interrogative tracks – as full of depth, strangeness, and contradictions as they are lifting hooks – the band balances existential, environmental, and political anxieties with fatherly sentiments, self-satirizing lyrics, forever-lively guitar lines, and shimmering strings.

The Secret Sisters – Saturn Return CD/LP (New West)

“As we age, we face obstacles that are beyond our control. Some forces are internal: insecurity, anxiety, fear. Some are external: the loss of loved ones, an unjust system and the fragility of time. Yet the mark of maturity is how you respond when you realize you’re not in control. Where do you find your resilience? This album is a reflection of us coming to terms with how to find our power in the face of an unfair world. These songs lead listeners past ‘where happy man searches, to a place only mad women know.’ We question our purpose, our relationships, and our faith. Trading the fears of our youth for the dread that rages within us as mature women. With Saturn Return, our hope is that women can feel less alone in their journey through the modern world. We need each other more than we ever have; the less competition and the more inclusiveness and understanding, the better. We are southern women in the 21st century, convicted by our beliefs.” – The Secret Sisters

Soccer Mommy – Color Theory CDEP/12” (Loma Vista)

For Sophie Allison aka Soccer Mommy, Color Theory confronts the ongoing mental health and familial trials that have plagued the 22-year-old artist since pre-pubescence, presenting listeners with an uncompromisingly honest self-portrait, and reminding us exactly why her critically-acclaimed debut, 2018’s Clean, made her a hero to many. The new album’s sonic landscape is vast and dexterous, with melodies that shimmer on the surface, but reveal an unsettling darkness with each listen. “I wanted the experience of listening to color theory to feel like finding a dusty old cassette tape that has become messed up over time, because that’s what this album is: an expression of all the things that have slowly degraded me personally,” Allison explains. “The production warps, the guitar solos occasionally glitch, the melodies can be poppy and deceptively cheerful. To me, it sounds like the music of my childhood distressed and, in some instances, decaying.” [Limited indie store exclusive colored vinyl pressing also available.]

Today Is The Day – No Good To Anyone CD/LP (BMG)

Visionary metal outfit Today’s The Day’s new album was recorded and mastered by Steve Austin, who offers, “I fuckin’ love No Good To Anyone. I wanted to make the heaviest and most rocking, psychedelic songs possible. To take you on a trip. Anything goes at any second. No Good To Anyone is an experience. No Good To Anyone is beginning of the end of your life.” It represents the literal sound of a man rising from the darkest and lowest point of his life to a new plateau, delivering one of the most dynamic and poignant records in Today Is The Day’s enduring and ongoing legacy. Decibel Magazine calls the title track “the sound of a man pulling himself straight through hell and battling his way out. Building from slow, doomy dirges into a tangled mess of jagged guitars, discordant notes, off-kilter drumming and half-snarled-half-shrieked vocals, the song is proof positive that Today Is The Day has a point to prove and a story to tell on their new album.”

Produced by the award-winning Banger Films, ZZ Top: That Little Ol’ Band From Texas tells the story of how three teenage bluesmen – Billy F Gibbons, Dusty Hill, and Frank Beard – became one of the biggest, most beloved bands on the planet, all while maintaining a surrealist mystique that continues to intrigue fans and entice onlookers 50 years after the band’s inception. The 90-minute documentary is packaged with 35 minutes of live performances, a mix of recent Gruene Hall and archival footage.

The Allman Brothers Band’s first jam together – and last song performed together – was a Muddy Waters song “Trouble No More” which also became their first demoed track. The recording has remained unreleased until now, kicking off this 50th anniversary collection. Each set is housed in special packaging and includes an 88-page booklet, unreleased band photos and newly shot photos of memorabilia from the Big House Museum, and an essay on the band’s 50-year history by John Lynskey.

Audrey Horne – Waiting For The Night: Live CD+Blu-ray (Napalm)

Audrey Horne has a reputation as one of the best and most energetic live hard-rock bands in Europe. Over the course of 18 years, six albums and a countless live shows, they have continued to prove this. Waiting For The Night contains 16 energetic tracks that were recorded live at the USF Verftet and Bergfesten in their hometown Bergen (Norway) in 2018: passionate, rousing, timeless, extraordinary hard rock that leaves nothing to be desired.

The Babys – Anthology 2 2xCD (Sunset Blvd.)

Formed in 1976, The Babys exploded onto the UK rock scene proving to be a competitive force in the Bad Company tradition, pioneering the sound that become known as the ’80s power rock ballad.

Martin Barre – Stage Left CD/LP (Purple Pyramid)

CD and yellow colored vinyl reissues of the 2013 solo album from the Jethro Tull guitarist.

Berzerker Legion – Obliterate The Weak CD/LP (Listenable)

Berzerker Legion was founded in 2016 by guitarists Tomas Elofsson (Hypocracy) and Alwin Zuur (Asphyx) with a vision to create death metal of the most belligerent quality, they recruited a line-up of solid well-known musicians consisting of James Stewart (Vader) on drums, Jonny Pettersson (Wombbath) on vocals and Fredrik Isaksson (Dark Funeral) on bass to complete the Legion. [Limited red colored vinyl pressing also available.]

Black Market Brass – Undying Thirst CD/LP (Colemine)

Black Market Brass’ sophomore record is a noxious brew of diesel and bleach; a special long-player full of wasteoid rippers for skullduggerous hoverbike gangs peddling fugazi relics and snake oil tinctures. Hellacious guitars, nitrous-charged percussion, a brass section harsher than paint-thinner, and a special batch of short-circuited electronics and synthesizers will leave your head buzzing into the 31st century [Limited colored vinyl pressing also available.]

Blood And Sun – Love & Ashes CD/LP (Nordvis)

With resonant eloquence, Luke Tromiczak and friends plant a new seed into the murky soil of dark folk, birthing the heartfelt new album Love & Ashes. Nine fresh songs lit a beacon of inspiration and knowledge into the desolate nights of the wilderness, and set a fire ablaze in our hearts, old and new friends alike. With Tromiczak’s commanding baritone leading the way, Love & Ashes is lush with passionate drumming, sincere acoustic guitars and beautiful strings, warming your soul in times of darkness.

Caribou – Suddenly CD/LP+MP3 (Merge)

A warm, untamable, and constantly surprising record about family and the changes we go through as those relationships evolve. Most prominently, Suddenly refers to the moments of dramatic and unexpected change that occur at points in any life and within any family-universal themes that can catch you off guard and change your life in a heartbeat.

Cold Beat – Mother CD/LP (DFA)

Wound tight with an energy that ricochets from one song into the next, Mother was made while frontperson Hannah Lew (formerly of indie trio Grass Widow) was pregnant and considering the chaotic conditions of the world she was bringing a new human into. If we consider Mother an artistic style guide through space and time, the framework Cold Beat provide is overcast by design but focused in execution; locked-in drums and synths with choir-like melodies high above it all.

Jeremy Cunningham – Weather Up There CD/LP (Northern Spy)

Chicago drummer and composer Jeremy Cunningham wrote The Weather Up There in response to the loss of his brother Andrew, who died in a home invasion robbery in 2008. Co-produced by Jeff Parker and Paul Bryan, and engineered by Paul Bryan and John McEntire, this new work confronts the tragedy of violence and examines the acute ripple effect on several people’s lives through the lens of memory, response, and collage.

Daniel Davies – Signals CD/LP (Sacred Bones)

Limited colored vinyl pressing. Whether scoring a film or making a solo album, Daniel Davies thinks cinematically. Images and story – on a movie screen, on a canvas, or flashing through his mind – inform the shape of his compositions and the sounds he uses to bring them to life. For Signals, the inspiration for his musical narration was a collaboration with visual artist Jesse Draxler, whose otherworldly mixed media works grace the cover and the booklet.

Alabaster Deplume is a London-based bandleader, composer, saxophonist, activist and orator. Whilst much of his music contains vocals, this is a collection of instrumentals. The music of To Cy & Lee: Instrumentals Vol. 1 contains naturally elegant orchestration wrapped around something visceral and primordial. The music is filled with space, inspired by computer games and Japanese animation, particularly Joe Hisaishi’s soundtrack for Castle In The Sky.

The Drown – Subaqueous CD/LP (Prophecy)

On his second album Subaqueous under The Drown moniker, Portland’s funeral doom extremist Markov Soroka – also the heart and soul of Tchornobog and Aureole – sets out to absorb all light and in the process creates realms of fluorescent beauty. [Limited transparent blue colored vinyl pressing also available.]

Flatfoot 56 – Toil [Reissue/2012] CD/LP (Ollie Mob Worldwide)

Flatfoot 56’s 2012 album has been reissued. Some have suggested that Toil would be less raucous than previous albums, but the band’s well-noted hardcore-tinged sound is still present.

A collection containing a three-part journey: the original 2014 album Prospect Hill; the 2015 Record Store Day nine-track EP What Got Over; and a third section, The Drum Major Instinct, a set of 12 previously unissued instrumental tracks that presents the vision of the Phoenix rising from the ashes, morphing into a butterfly, and seeing the world with a new set of eyes.

Angelica Garcia – Cha Cha Palace CD/LP (Spacebomb)

With Mexican and Salvadoran roots in the San Gabriel Valley, east of Los Angeles, Angelica Garcia has spent the last few years creating a new, second family for herself within the welcoming community of Richmond, VA. This multicultural dichotomy shapes her new album Cha Cha Palace, a “mental scrapbook” of her journey for listeners, and for herself, all the while confronting a lifetime of feeling split between two identities. Pulling inspiration from her experience growing up in the predominantly immigrant Latinx communities, Garcia’s roots are woven all throughout the album. And like Lorde and Billie Eilish, she isn’t afraid to tear pages out of her diary and share candid emotions that might be difficult, and oftentimes daunting.

Giöbia – Plasmatic Idol CD/LP (Heavy Psych Sounds)

Giöbia’s Plasmatic Idol is simply impressive: a collection of different sounds and atmospheres, brings the listener to another sidereal world full of dreams and mind travels. You can clearly feel the influence of certain Pink Floyd in some passages but also pinches of Italian progressive rock, horror soundtrack sounds from ’70s movies, ’60s garage influences, US West Coast psychedelia, and late ’60s space rock a la Hawkwind.

Glacier Veins – The World You Want To See CD/LP (Equal Vision)

Glacier Veins is a dream punk band from Portland, OR.

Sierra Hull – 25 Trips CD/LP (Rounder)

25 Trips is a genre-transcending album emerging from the world of folk-pop, bluegrass, and acoustic music.

Insect Ark – The Vanishing CD/LP (Profound Lore)

Evoking visions of dripping and lurching horror films, outer space travel, and gritty noir textures, NYC-based instrumental band Insect Ark is led by founder Dana Schechter. Using delay-drenched lap steel, distorted bass and synths, and acoustic and electronic drums, the band’s music creates a sonic mural both uncomfortably intimate and icy cold.

Produced by Mike Mogis (Bright Eyes, Conor Oberst, First Aid Kit) I’ll Get By, Avi Kaplan’s new seven-track EP firmly establishes the renowned bass vocalist as a generational songwriting talent in the mold of inspirations such as Fleet Foxes, Hozier and Iron and Wine. Timeless, earthy, and raw, these indelible tracks, threaded together by the search for spiritual and physical redemption, are cast with acoustic guitar, pedal steel, swirling organ and deeply rooted percussion. [Vinyl edition due April 24.]

lié – You Want It Real CD/LP (Mint)

With ties to techno and a penchant for earth-rumbling post-punk-along with a staunch willingness to stop rape culture, privilege and patriarchy in its tracks-there’s no denying that Vancouver trio lié (pronounced “lee-ey” and lower-case preferred) is an integral force in the global underground.

For the entirety of her nearly three-decade-long career, globally acclaimed singer-songwriter Lisa Loeb has been exploring a variety of styles of music, moving seamlessly between creating family-friendly albums, including her 2018 Grammy-winning Feel What U Feel, and adult-focused studio albums like Tails, Firecracker, and The Way It Really Is. Her 15th record to date, A Simple Trick To Happiness, finds Loeb putting forth her most poignant and profoundly personal album in an exceptional body of work.

Sergio Mendes – In The Key Of Joy CD/2xCD/LP (Concord)

In The Key Of Joy is the first album from Sergio Mendes in 5 years. It features an array of guest artists that join him in creating an album with the forward leaning sound that has come to define his music. Guest artists include Common, Cali y El Dandee, Buddy, Hermeto Pascoal, Roge, Guinga, Sheléa, Sugar Joans, Gracinha Leporace and Joe Pizzulo. [Deluxe double-CD edition includes classic songs by Sergio Mendes such as “Mas Que Nada”, “Never Gonna Let You Go”, and many more.]

Giorgi Mikadze – Georgian Microjamz CD/2xLP (RareNoise)

The folk music of Georgia is one of the earliest and richest polyphonic traditions in the world, despite being little known to the rest of the modern world. Combining a sense of national pride, musical invention and exploratory spirit, pianist/composer & arranger Giorgi Mikadze has created a striking new hybrid of traditional Georgian folk music and progressive microtonal jazz on his breathtaking debut album, Georgian Microjamz.

Mobs – Cinema Paradiso CD/LP (Rude)

Mobs’ debut Cinema Paradiso is a concept album, where tracks are inspired by cult movies. The band sat down in the studio with Australian producers M2 (Aloe Blacc, Rachel Costanzo, Sunset City), experimented drawing sounds from a retro era and writing songs from the perspective of the main character of specific 80’s or 90’s films. Mobs has spent a lot of time crafting their niche sound, mixing old: drawing inspiration by ‘80s icons including Phil Collins, Peter Gabriel, Tears for Fears, Mr Mister, Michael Jackson, Whitney Houston, Steve Winwood and Billy Ocean; with new including pop culture stalwarts Lany, Coin, M83, 1975, Joan, and Lauv – to name a few.

Mondo Generator – Fuck It CD/LP (Heavy Psych Sounds)

Eight years since there last record, Mondo Generator return with a mixture of speed rock, American punk and hardcore, with the typical Nick Oliveri style. [Limited orange colored vinyl pressing also available.]

Arranged by soundtrack master Kentaro Haneda and featuring a mysterious group of the best ’70s Japanese funk musicians, 1977’s The Adventures of Kindaichi Kosuke is pure undiluted disco funk.

Oiseaux-Tempête ‎– Tlamess (Sortilège) [OST] CD/LP (Sub Rosa)

Oiseaux-Tempête’s first original soundtrack composed for the second feature film by critically-acclaimed Tunisian director Ala Eddine Slim. Combining hypnotic feedbacks and synthesizer orchestral work, drifting ambient with shamanic beats, the Tlamess (Sortilège) OST was entirely improvised while watching the movie’s rushes.

Outlaws – Dixie Highway CD/2xLP (Steamhammer)

With the release of Dixie Highway, southern rockers The Outlaws celebrate their 45th anniversary since the release of the first album. [Limited colored vinyl pressing also available.]

Kassa Overall – I Think I’m Good CD/LP (Brownswood)

Seattle-raised, Brooklyn-residing Kassa Overall is a jazz musician, emcee, singer, producer, and drummer. His second full-length album, I Think I’m Good, is the work of an artist whose voice has ripened to its own hard-earned, provocative conclusions, erasing the need to talk about dissolving barriers between hip-hop and jazz because he has begun a new conversation.

Paganizer – Death To The Copperfields CD (Metal Bastard)

Live album. Loud, proud, bombastic and belligerent, Swedish metal crew Paganizer have been raging against the dying of mankind’s light for the last two decades, a consistent and reliable force for massive riffs and even bigger choruses.

Ted Poor – You Already Know CD/LP (Impulse)

Ted Poor is a Seattle-based drummer whose adventurous, soulful playing has vaulted him to the stages of some of today’s most important musicians and placed him amongst those drummers most in demand. After graduating from the Eastman School of Music in 2003, Ted moved from his hometown of Rochester, NY to New York City where he quickly made a deep impression on its jazz and indie-rock music communities. In his ten years in NYC Ted appeared on dozens of recordings with world-renowned artists.

Bobby Previte/Jamie Saft/Nels Cline – Music From The Early 21st Century CD/LP (RareNoise)

When future generations listen back to the sounds of this still young millennium, what music will remain to define the era? Master improvisers Bobby Previte, Jamie Saft and Nels Cline make their bid for immortality with Music From The Early 21st Century, their venturesome captured live during a brief tour of the Northeastern US in early 2019. The album is essentially a freely improvised organ trio set filtered through the lens of these three encyclopedically eclectic masters. It morphs continually from one prismatic hybrid of styles to another throughout its ten carefully curated pieces.

The Proper Ornaments – Mission Bells CD/LP (Tapete)

Mission Bells is a majestic achievement, a musical maelstrom, its harmonies drawing the inclined listener into an irreversible somnambulant state, caught between dreamland and waking hours. The beauty of it is, you won’t want to escape, even though the door is flung open as your postmodern life awaits you outside.

Ratboys – Printer’s Devil CD/LP+MP3/Cassette (Topshelf)

What started as an acoustic duo has finally transformed into a full-scale indie-rock band with a clear identity. Printer’s Devil features big-chorus power pop songs alongside intimate folk songs and devastating alt-country tracks, which as a whole showcase the group’s signature versatility. [Limited colored vinyl pressing also available.]

Regarde Les Hommes Tomber – Ascension CD/2xLP (Season Of Mist)

Regarde Les Hommes Tomber step outside of the proverbial confines of black metal with Ascension, ultimately creating dramatic soundscapes enveloped in extremity. Layered with grandiose riffage, agonizing vocals, and pockets of ambient progression, the French outfit put forth an offering that devours the listener with sweeping crescendos of blackened intensity.

The Revivalists – Made In Muscle Shoals CDEP (Loma Vista)

Made In Muscle Shoals finds The Revivalists down at the hallowed Fame Studios offering up re-imagined takes of some of the soulful anthems from their 2018 studio album, Take Good Care including the mega hit “Wish I Knew You”, plus the Bee Gees cover “To Love Somebody” and new song “Bitter End”. [Vinyl edition due March 20.]

Mariana Semkina – Sleepwalking CD/LP (Kscope)

Following the success of four highly-praised albums with Iamthemorning, lyricist, singer and co-songwriter Marjana Semkina (also known as Mariana) releases her spellbinding debut solo album, Sleepwalking. Characterized by her composed and unique voice, complex melodic lines and poetic lyrics with literary references, Semkina has often compared favorably with Kate Bush. The new material draws from the Iamthemorning soundscape but exists fully in Marjana’s world; a compelling mixture of alternative folk, pop, drama, beauty and emotionally purging lyrics. A blend akin to the darker folk of Aldous Harding, Marissa Nadler, Sumie and Florist.

The Seshen – Cyan CD/LP (Tru Thoughts)

The Seshen’s music pulls from a deep well of electronic influences, R&B, and indie rock.

Son Rompe Pera – Batuco CD/LP (Aya)

Born and raised in the deep outskirts of Mexico City, the Gama brothers are keeping alive the rich legacy of marimba music running through their family with their latest project, Son Rompe Pera. While firmly rooted in the tradition of this historic instrument, their fresh take on the folk icon challenges its limits as never before, moving it into the garage/punk world of urban misfits and firmly planting it in the 21st century.

Leo Takami – Felis Catus And Silence CD/LP (Unseen Worlds)

Takami counterpoints the soothing aesthetics of prime-era Windham Hill new age guitar-heroism with meditative, intellectual compositions comprised of ambitious, process-oriented arrangements. While Takami largely wears his genre influences on his sleeve – jazz, classical, Japanese gagaku – the influence of ambient music is a tacit foundation of his work.

James Taylor – American Standard CD/LP+MP3/2xLP (Fantasy)

It takes an extraordinary artist to re-imagine some of the most beloved songs of the 20th century and make them completely their own. And that’s precisely what James Taylor has accomplished with his brand-new album, An all-star array of Taylor’s musical comrades makes significant contributions on American Standard including drummer Steve Gadd, percussionist Luis Conte, electric bassist Jimmy Johnson, upright bassist Viktor Krauss, keyboardist Larry Goldings, fiddler Stuart Duncan, dobroist Jerry Douglas, and vocalists Arnold McCuller, Kate Markowitz, Andrea Zonn and Dorian Holley. [Audiophile 180gm 45rpm double-vinyl pressing also available.]

Kate Teague – Kate Teague CDEP/12” (Muscle Beach)

Released last September on vinyl – now available on CD. New EP from the singer/songwriter.

Thor – Rising CD (Deadline Music)

The mighty Thor unleashes yet another storm of metallic fury with this all new studio album. [Vinyl edition due March 27.]

Tombs – Monarchy Of Shadows CD (Season Of Mist)

Monarchy Of Shadows is the fastest and most vicious blackened metal from Tombs to date, showcasing the quartet’s metallic precision without sacrificing the bleak post-punk leanings that set the critically-acclaimed band apart. [Vinyl edition due March 6.]

Tycho – Simulcast CD/LP (Mom + Pop Music)

Simulcast follows the release of Tycho’s fifth studio album Weather earlier in the year. Simulcast features instrumental versions of the album tracks.

Tzur/Hershkovits/Klampanis/Blake – Here Be Dragons CD (ECM)

ECM debut of New York based, Tel Aviv born saxophonist Oded Tzur, a strikingly original player and musical storyteller. His graceful and fluid tenor sax sound has been influenced by studies with bansuri master Hariprasad Chaurasia, and the concept of raga is subtly embedded in his elegant compositions, played with verve and imagination by his outstanding Israeli-Greek-American jazz group. [Vinyl edition due March 20.]

Negro and Pearce collect their favorite moments across a definitive decade for house and garage: the ’90s. Vol. 2 includes material from UFO (United Future Organization), and Slam Mode, as well as remixes from Kings Of Tomorrow, Kerri Chandler, Marshall Jefferson, and Smack Productions and is packed with sultry vocal lines and the sort of slick, irresistible grooves that defined the era.

The second volume in a series of compilations taken from the archives of Disques Debs International, the longest-running and most prolific label of the French Caribbean. Set up by the late Henri Debs in the late ‘50s, the label has continued for over 50 years, releasing hundreds of records and playing a pivotal role in bringing the creole music of Guadeloupe and Martinique to a wider international audience. Vol. 2 of the series focuses on the label’s ‘70s output and the development of the unique Cadence sound, pulling disparate influences into a Pan-Caribbean blend of rhythms, styles and languages that dominated the dancehalls, clubs and concerts of the decade.

Various Artists – The Rough Guide To The Roots Of The Blues CD/LP (World Music Network)

From the earthy guitar-driven country blues of Blind Lemon Jefferson and Charley Patton to the sequined glamour of the classic blues singers Bessie Smith and Ma Rainey, this Rough Guide charts the early recorded history of the blues through its key pioneers.

Wajatta – Don’t Let Get You Down CD/2xLP+MP3 (Brainfeeder)

Wajatta – the musical duo of Reggie Watts and John Tejada – return with their second album. Coming from different worlds, but sharing a passion for the rich history of electronic music, beat-boxer/comedian/musician Watts and electronic music artist/DJ/producer Tejada bring out the best in each other’s formidable skill sets.

Wishbone Ash – Coat Of Arms CD/2xLP (Steamhammer)

Coat Of Arms sounds stylistically diverse and technically accomplished, yet the new album is typical of Wishbone Ash’s traditional strengths as they head into their 50th year.

Warren Wolf – Reincarnation CD (Mack Avenue)

Warren Wolf reveals an entirely different side to his multi-faceted talents. As the title implies, Reincarnation represents a rebirth of sorts for the Baltimore vibesman. In part, it frees Wolf to indulge his love for the R&B and soul hits that served as the soundtrack to his formative years in the 1990s. It’s also a celebration of a new lease on life, a happiness and contentment that he’s discovered through a new marriage and his five beloved children.

Produced by the award-winning Banger Films, ZZ Top: That Little Ol’ Band From Texas tells the story of how three teenage bluesmen – Billy F Gibbons, Dusty Hill, and Frank Beard – became one of the biggest, most beloved bands on the planet, all while maintaining a surrealist mystique that continues to intrigue fans and entice onlookers 50 years after the band’s inception. The 90-minute documentary is packaged with 35 minutes of live performances, a mix of recent Gruene Hall and archival footage.

This Week’s Vinyl Exclusives:

Arab Strap – Philophobia [Reissue/1998] 2xLP (1972]

Arab Strap’s sophomore slam dunk is one of the most original and most enduring front-to-back albums in the canon of modern indie rock.

Art Ensemble Of Chicago – The Spiritual [Reissue/1974] LP (ORG Music)

180gm black vinyl pressing. The Spiritual, a free jazz album recorded by The Art Ensemble of Chicago in 1974, finds the group of stellar musicians at their creative peak. With various types of percussion, though the absence of a traditional drummer, the ensemble is able to create vivid, freeing compositions without the confines of conventional structure. The quartet, consisting of Joseph Jarman, Roscoe Mitchell, Lester Bowie, and Malachi Favors, explore the depths of Avant-Garde Jazz through a means that has yet to be touched on in a comparable capacity.

The third installment of the Baast album series, Trident sees the band heading into the direction of electronic soundscapes, delving deeper into soundtrack and ambient textures more so than previous albums Dimension and Bazaar. R. Scott Dibble and the inimitable DJ Johnny Basil remain at the helm with a round of uber talented guest artists who’ve contributed in the past along with some new players, heavy on talent but even more so on the vibe that’s captured in the recordings.

Big Blood – Do You Wanna Have A Skeleton Dream? LP (Feeding Tube)

Unlike their last LP, The Daughter’s Union (2019) (which seemed like some sort of experiment involving glam-rock-readymades), Do You Wanna Have A Skeleton Dream? is awash with crazily re-imagined girl group dynamics. Some of these tight-sparkly-dress recreations have a savage teenage authority, but others wiggle more like dreams stolen from the nodes of Julee Cruise, Angelo Badalamenti, or David Lynch.

Broken Social Scene – Live At Third Man LP (Third Man)

Third Man Records had the pleasure of hosting the inimitable Broken Social Scene, carefully absorbing and recording their magnetic and unforgettable live set on the Blue Room stage. Epic, panoramic, and intimate all at the same time, the legendary Toronto collective Broken Social Scene began as an ebbing and flowing collective of artists in the late ’90s, collaborating to create a distinct strand of indie rock that is both perplexingly maximal and straight-up catchy.

Gabs Coomes – Sheldonian/Live 12” (Caroline)

Limited 2019 live EP from the Supergrass frontman.

Da Buze Bruvaz/Giallo Point – Adebesi Hat Recut 2xLP (Grilchy Party)

Rugged and raw unapologetic hip-hop. [CD edition due March 13.]

Dadamah – This Is Not A Dream [Reissue/1992] 2xLP (Grapefruit)

This Is Not A Dream is a double album collection of every song released by the legendary Dunedin, New Zealand quartet Dadamah, including the This Is Not A Dream LP, and their three 7” singles and one unique compilation track. Grapefruit’s release is a thirteen song collection with the full album on one LP and all the 7” and compilation tracks on the other. Inspired by the Kranky label’s CD compilation of Dadamah’s existing catalog in 1994, this vinyl version includes two additional songs from a posthumously released 7” and it’s been sequenced and designed by the band.

Famously formed in 8th grade for a school talent show, The Donnas began as a self-styled co-ed answer to The Ramones, each taking the first name of Donna (as opposed to the last name of Ramone), and playing gleefully unapologetic, pop-punk paeans to adolescent alienation and hedonism from a decidedly female perspective. But by the time of 2004’s Gold Medal, their sixth album and second for the major label Atlantic, the group had clearly matured. [Limited colored vinyl pressing also available.]

Inspired by the legacy and above all the spirit of John Coltrane, Living Space features five new compositions that seek to express the beauty of slow change, not only through the microtonal shifts in sound that Eleh navigates but moving with the atmospheric and shape-shifting conditions that the music creates as it interacts with the listening space, whether bedroom or concert hall, each one of them unique.

Eleh/NYZ – Split LP (Important)

New split EP of experimental electronics and synth.

Endless Boogie/Weak Signal – Jerome b/w Rolex 7” (Wharf Cat)

Endless Boogie are absolute legends whose sound is equal parts krautrock, proto-punk and electric blues. Jerome features their classic line-up and also lead guitar by Matt Sweeney and Stephen Malkmus. Weak Signal is a critically lauded new band from New York that has toured with Deerhunter, Gang Gang Dance and played with every good band in NYC.

Eyelids – The Accidental Falls LP (Jealous Butcher)

Recently released on CD – now available on vinyl. On The Accidental Falls, Portland, OR’s Eyelids, one of rock’s best-kept secrets, step firmly out from the considerable shadow cast by the band members’ second-to-none pedigrees earned from time spent in Guided By Voices, The Decemberists, Stephen Malkmus and Elliott Smith. Featuring lyrics written by poet and frequent Tim Buckley collaborator Larry Beckett that span over four decades and produced by R.E.M. guitarist Peter Buck, it features a bountiful cacophony of gorgeously shimmering riffs and songs so delectably crafted that all who value the electric guitar as a source of joy should find themselves awash in goosebumps once under this record’s spell.

Ellen Fullman ‎– In The Sea [Reissue/1987] 2xLP (Superior Viaduct)

Ellen Fullman began developing The Long String Instrument in her St. Paul, Minnesota studio in 1980 and moved to Brooklyn the following year. Inspired by composer and instrument builder Harry Partch, Fullman’s large-scale work creates droning, organ-like overtones that are as unique in the world of sound as her vision of the instrument itself.

Jon Gibson ‎– Songs & Melodies, 1973-1977 2xLP (Superior Viaduct)

Since the mid-1960s, Jon Gibson has played a key role in the development of American avant-garde music. As a versatile reed player, he has performed with everyone from Steve Reich and Philip Glass to Terry Riley and La Monte Young. In the 1970s, Gibson would emerge as a minimalist composer in his own right and release two exceptional albums, Visitations and Two Solo Pieces, on Glass’ Chatham Square imprint. Songs & Melodies brings together recordings from 1973 to 1977 (mostly previously unreleased), featuring prominent figures in New York’s scene including Arthur Russell, Barbara Benary and Julius Eastman.

Gladie – Safe Sins LP (Run For Cover)

Safe Sins, the debut record from Philadelphia band Gladie, begins with a prayer: “I close my eyes, pretend to pray/That this shame would just fuck off today,” sings Augusta Koch, her familiar timbre floating atop a wave of bleary-eyed synths on opener “Pray”. It’s a gentle, hymnal introduction to a record that ducks from jangly power pop to plucky indie rock, scrappy electronic psych jams to swaying shoegaze. The record borrows its title from Koch’s personal poetry theme book: Safe Sins is a place of safety, acceptance, and progress. It is a record about isolation, loss, and dismantling shame and grief through self-analysis. [Limited colored vinyl pressing also available.]

Grant Green – Nigeria [Reissue/1962] LP (Blue Note)

Grant Green’s Nigeria is an underrated gem in the guitarist’s remarkable Blue Note catalog. Recorded in 1962, and released in 1980, the album features a top-shelf band with Sonny Clark on piano, Sam Jones on bass, and powerhouse Art Blakey on drums. The groove is deep right from the start, highlighting timeless renditions of the classic tracks.

Grizzly Bear ‎– Horn Of Plenty [Reissue/2003] LP (Kanine)

The debut album from Grizzly Bear has been repressed on cloudy clear vinyl for its 15 year anniversary. Before they were sound tracking Super Bowl ads, headlining festivals, making TV appearances and opening for Radiohead, Ed Droste started Grizzly Bear as a pet project meant only for friends.

Gryffin – Gravity 2xLP (Interscope)

The debut album by Gryffin features Elley Duhe, Marina, Carly Rae Jepsen, Aloe Blacc and many others.

Limited 180gm colored vinyl pressings now available, each housed in gatefold sleeve plus new liner commentary from founders Jorma Kaukonen and Jack Casady. At first an experimental side project during their tenure with Jefferson Airplane, co-founders Jorma Kaukonen and Jack Casady soon created a full time Hot Tuna, giving the music world a whole new approach to blues, country blues, gospel, jazz fusion, and all things rock with their magnificent artistry and musicianship which is unparalleled to this day.

Kevin Krauter – Full Hand LP (Bayonet)

On his sophomore album, Full Hand, Indiana musician Kevin Krauter tackles complicated emotional states and ideas through elliptical songwriting that is at once poetic and truthful. It’s not especially uncommon for artists to probe deep into their own psyche to uncover what makes them tic, but Krauter’s light touch feels like something all his own. [Limited transparent yellow colored vinyl pressing also available.]

Lavender Flu – Barbarian Dust LP (In The Red)

In contrast to their prior mobile-unit hole-ups and home-taped fryers, Barbarian Dust, the third album from Lavender Flu, marks the band’s first raid of a proper studio. Extending the formalities further, the conceptual impetus for the sessions stems from a collective meditation on cosmic biker rock. Smokey, sure-and that peculiar, chunky ether seeps into the resulting collection-but it all ultimately serves to a liquid frame, a set of parameters imposed purely to burst through.

Huey Lewis & The News – Weather LP (BMG)

Recently released on CD – now available on vinyl. Featuring Huey Lewis & The News’ first new, original songs since 2001’s Plan B – plus one cover of the classic Eugene Church soul burner “Pretty Girls Everywhere” – Weather was produced in-house by Huey and the guys, just like every record they’ve made since the early 1980s. Following their previous offering “Her Love Is Killin’ Me” – a “harmonica-topped, gritty-voiced, good-natured boogie that has Huey Lewis & The News sounding like absolutely nothing has changed since the mid-1980s” (The New York Times) – “While We’re Young” delivers another preview of the patience and positivity at the core of Weather. Unaware that recording sessions were about to be cut short by a 2018 Ménière’s disease diagnosis (a rare disorder of the inner ear that causes episodes of vertigo) that could keep him from ever singing again, Lewis reflects on fleeting mortality with a rasp as uninhibited, witty, and confident as ever, backed by the same strength of smooth-sailing soul arrangements that first launched the group to international superstardom. Realized through years spent road-testing the tracks on tour, Lewis calls Weather some of the band’s best work.

Hank Mobley, famously called the middleweight champion of the tenor saxophone, had a round sound and an incredible rhythmic lightness. This remarkable 1957 session features a stunning cast of bop giants, including Art Farmer, Pepper Adams, Sonny Clark and more. East of Brooklyn, a highlight on the album, is a masterpiece of lyrical construction. Part of the Blue Note Tone Poet audiophile vinyl reissue series.

Jim Morrison Music By The Doors ‎– An American Prayer [Reissue/1978] LP (Elektra)

Limited 180gm vinyl pressing of the ninth studio album by The Doors that posthumously features Jim Morrison. The band reunited seven years after Morrison’s death and five years after the remaining members broke up. They recorded backing tracks over Morrison’s poetry (originally recorded 1969-1970). Other pieces of music and audio include dialogue from Morrison’s film HWY: An American Pastoral and snippets from jam sessions.

Charley Patton – The Rough Guide To Charley Patton – Father Of The Delta Blues LP (World Music Network)

When it comes to the Delta blues, all roads lead to its father figure Charley Patton. An immensely gifted performer, Patton served as a major influence on other legendary bluesmen who followed including Robert Johnson, Muddy Waters and Howlin’ Wolf.

Peggy Sue – Vices LP (Peggy Sue)

Ten tracks are bittersweet tales of love and distraction, as simple as they are powerful, and irresistible in their combination of tender harmonies and stark, cautiously optimistic guitars. Vices borrows from the perfectly constructed pop songs of the 1960s, and the understated, noisy anthems of nineties bands like Blur and the Breeders, and it is a self-assured return to the very essence of Peggy Sue.

Pentagram ‎– Review Your Choices [Reissue/1999] LP (Svart)

Pentagram ‎– Sub-Basement [Reissue/2001] LP (Svart)

Vinyl reissues of the fourth and fifth albums from by the Virginia doom metal band.

Robert Plant – Digging Deep 8×7” (Es Paranza)

Robert Plant is celebrating the second season of his hugely popular podcast, Digging Deep with the release of a limited edition 7′ singles box set. Digging Deep includes 16 A-sides and rare B-sides spanning three decades, remastered versions available on vinyl for the first time. The eight-disc collection also features restored artwork from the original 7” releases, packaged in a bespoke hardback book.

Vinyl reissue of the first full-length album by the Norwegian black metal band.

Trap Them ‎– Darker Handcraft [Reissue/2011] LP (Prosthetic)

Vinyl reissue of Trap Them’s 2011 album – a metal, punk, d-beat, hardcore hybrid originally recorded by Converge guitarist, Kurt Ballou at his God City Studios.

Tessa Violet – Bad Ideas LP+MP3 (Tag Music)

Last year, Tessa Violet released “Crush”, the first single from her new album Bad Ideas. In the time since her last four singles have exploded, Tessa has gone from an acoustic-leaning solo artist, to an inspirational female fronting a shredding live band. Although her recordings are competitive modern productions which perform well on playlists, her live show has a raw organic energy that is intoxicating. Limited colored vinyl pressings.

Trees Of Eternity – Hour Of The Nightingale [Reissue/2016] LP (Svart)

Vinyl reissue of the 2016 album from the Finnish doom metal band.

Stanley Turrentine – Comin’ Your Way [Reissue/1961] LP (Blue Note)

Stanley Turrentine is at his blues-drenched best on Comin’ Your Way. This 1961 session features the magnificent rhythm section of the Horace Parlan Trio (Horace Parlan, George Trucker & Al Harewood) at the peak of their collective power. Also featured is Tommy Turrentine on trumpet, contributing his strong Fats Navarro influence. Part of the Blue Note Tone Poet audiophile vinyl reissue series.

The soundtrack to everyone’s favorite ’80s movie will have you singing along from start to finish. This brat-pack extravaganza boasts the anthemic “Don’t You (Forget About Me)” by Simple Minds, a hit so large it vaulted them into the collective consciousness. The Karla DeVito track “We Are Not Alone” still wears well, synonymous with some great imagery from the movie.

Norwegian producer Carmen Villain follows up last year’s cosmic beauty – Both Lines Will Be Blue – with a remix mini-album. Curated by Carmen, she asked some of her favorite producers to pick a track from the album to remix, which resulted in this collection of 6 tracks and 31 minutes of cosmic/dubs, featuring club ready tracks by Parris and Karima F., deep atmospheric reggaetón by DJ Python, fourth-world jams by D.K. and Yu Su and a far out dancehall dub by Jay Glass Dubs.

Waco Brothers – RESIST! LP (Bloodshot)

On RESIST!, Chicago’s original punk cowboys The Waco Brothers play protest songs about the folks getting shoved down and songs about the system that’s doing the shoving. They can be political, they can be personal, and sometimes there is no difference.

We Sell The Dead – Black Sleep LP (earMUSIC)

Released last week on CD – now available on vinyl. Sophomore album by the metal band.

White Heaven – Out [Reissue/1991] LP (Black Editions)

White Heavens’ debut album Out is one of the greatest psychedelic rock albums ever recorded. First released in 1991 by Tokyo’s P.S.F. Records and pressed in an edition of 500 copies, the original LP has become a holy grail in underground circles, with only a scant few copies ever making it outside of Japan.

Wormwood is a melodic black metal band from Stockholm, Sweden. Their 2017 debut album Ghostlands – Wounds From A Bleeding Earth makes its first appearance on vinyl with updated artwork. [Limited green colored vinyl pressing also available.]

Cassettes:

Ratboys – Printer’s Devil (Topshelf)

What started as an acoustic duo has finally transformed into a full-scale indie-rock band with a clear identity. Printer’s Devil features big-chorus power pop songs alongside intimate folk songs and devastating alt-country tracks, which as a whole showcase the group’s signature versatility.